Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2008-09: Vladislav Namestnikov played for Khimik Voskresensk-2 in the Russian junior league. He played for Russia at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, scoring 8 goals and adding 2 assists for 10 points in 5 games.

2009-10: In 26 games for Khimik Voskresensk, Namestnikov scored 11 goals and added 6 assists for 17 points. Namestnikov played for Russia at the 2010 U-18 World Junior Championship, scoring 5 goals and adding 2 assists for 7 points in 7 games. Namestnikov was chosen in the first round, 20th overall, of the 2010 CHL Import Draft by the OHL’s London Knights.

2010-11: In his OHL rookie season, Namestnikov played in 68 games for the London Knights. He scored 30 goals and added 38 assists for 68 points. In 6 playoff games, Namestnikov scored 1 goal and added 4 assists for 5 points. Namestnikov played for Team Orr at the 2011 CHL Home Hardware Top Prospects Game, picking up 1 assist in his team’s 7-1 win over Team Cherry. Namestnikov was chosen in the first round, 11th overall, of the 2011 KHL Draft by Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod.

2011-12: Namestnikov was the second-leading scorer for OHL champion London in his second season with the Knights. A surprising late cut from the Russian U20 team that played in the 2012 World Junior Championship, he scored 22 goals with a team-high 49 assists and was plus-15 with 50 penalty minutes in 63 games for the Knights. London had the OHL’s best record in the regular season and rolled through the playoffs. Namestnikov scored 4 goals with 14 assists and was plus-10 with 18 penalty minutes in 19 playoff games. He scored 2 goals and was minus-three in four games at the Memorial Cup tournament.

2012-13: Signed two a three-year, entry-level contract by the Lightning in March of 2012, Namestnikov played for Tampa Bay’s AHL affiliate in Syracuse in his first pro season. Making his debut with the Crunch as a 19-year-old, he scored 7 goals with 14 assists in 44 regular season games — missing two months due to a shoulder injury in October — and was +4 with 32 penalty minutes. Syracuse finished first in the East Division and reached the AHL Finals against Calder Cup champion Grand Rapids. Namestnikov scored 2 goals with 5 assists and was +7 with 10 penalty minutes in 18 playoff games.

2013-14: Namestnikov made his NHL debut with Tampa Bay in February in a game against the Red Wings and skated in four late season games with the Lightning. He was the second-leading scorer for Tampa Bay AHL affiliate Syracuse behind 2010 first round pick Brett Connolly. He had no points and was -1 with 4 penalty minutes, averaging 9:28 minutes of ice time in his brief time with Tampa Bay and did not appear in any playoff games. Namestnikov scored 19 goals with 29 assists and was -1 with 40 penalty minutes in 56 AHL games for Syracuse. The Crunch finished fifth in the East Division, missing the AHL playoffs.

2014-15: Namestnikov split his third pro season between the Lightning and AHL affiliate Syracuse. He scored 9 goals with 7 assists and was +1 with 13 penalty minutes in 43 regular season games for Tampa Bay, averaging 12 minutes of ice time. He appeared in 10 NHL playoff games heading into the Eastern Conference finals, registering 1 assist and finishing -2 with 4 penalty minutes while averaging eight minutes per game. Namestnikov was a point-per-game scorer while playing for the AHL’s Crunch. In 34 regular season games he scored 14 goals with 21 assists and was +11 with 12 penalty minutes.

Talent Analysis

Namestnikov is an offensively-gifted forward with high level stick handling skills and skating ability. He continues to refine his positional play, particularly his defensive awareness and consistency. He has dominated at the AHL level and appears close to cracking the NHL on a permanent basis. Namestnikov should continue to improve as he develops physically and adds the strength and bulk necessary to compete on a nightly basis.

Future

Namestnikov began the 2014-15 season with the Lightning before being returned to AHL affiliate Syracuse in December and was re-called in March, skating in a lower line role for Tampa Bay down the stretch and in the playoffs. Long-term Namestnikov's skill set and offensive instincts suggest he should be a consistent scorer at the NHL one day as he matures physically and becomes more responsible in his own end.

Photo: Tampa Bay Lightning forward prospect Vladislav Namestnikov has split his time this season between the Lightning and their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch (courtesy of Jerome Davis/Icon Sportswire)

The Syracuse Crunch sport the third-best record in the American Hockey League (26-11-5-0, 57 points) through the first half of the 2014-15 season. Despite a 10-game winning streak last month, the Crunch find themselves in a battle with the Springfield Falcons for the top spot in the Northeast Division. Read more»

Photo: Andrey Vasilevskiy has been very good in his first season of North American hockey, posting a 10-3-5 record in 18 AHL starts. Vasilevskiy even saw several NHL starts in December, filling in for injured starter Ben Bishop. (courtesy of Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)

Having gone 6-2-2 in their last 10 games, the Syracuse Crunch are trending upward thanks to a well-stocked Tampa Bay Lightning prospect pool highlighted by some promising goaltenders and depth on the blue line.

Photo: Defenseman Dominik Masin is one of six members of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s 2014 NHL Draft class to play in the CHL this season. (courtesy of Aaron Bell/OHL Images for the credit.)

Despite the graduation of Jonathan Drouin from the junior ranks, the Tampa Bay Lightning have plenty of reason to keep a keen eye on the QMJHL, OHL, and WHL this season. From the 2013 NHL Draft, American-born forward Adam Erne remains with Quebec in the ‘Q,’ while six of seven selections from last year’s draft are currently playing in the CHL.

Photo: Tampa Bay Lightning forward Cedric Paquette has split the 2014-15 season between the AHL and NHL. Paquette was picked in the fourth round of the 2012 NHL Draft. (courtesy of Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images)

Even with some of its most promising prospects graduating to NHL ranks in recent years, the Tampa Bay Lightning continue to boast one of the league’s most impressive prospect pools.

Photo: Tampa Bay Lightning forward Vladislav Namestnikov starred for the OHL’s London Knights for two seasons before playing the past two seasons for the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch (courtesy of Mark LoMoglio/Icon Sportswire)

Tampa Bay Lightning rookie forward Vladislav Namestnikov was among the scoring leaders during the 2014 NHL preseason, picking up seven assists in five games. It took him a couple of regular season games to find his groove, but Namestnikov broke through with two points against the Montreal Canadiens in a 7-1 Lightning win that included Namestnikov’s first NHL goal. Read more»